A stylus is an essential piece of kit for the designer on-the-move, for use with your favourite drawing apps for iPad (opens in new tab) and trying out new Photoshop brushes (opens in new tab). So we were excited to see what the latest Adonit Jot stylus could do to impress us.
We've seen lots of Jots from Adonit, but the Dash has to be the thinnest electronic stylus from the company yet. The tip is just 1.9mm, while the clip-and-carry body has an 8mm diameter. Compare that to the 12mm of LynkTec's Rechargeable Apex stylus. The result is a balanced, pen-like feel that's comfortable, light and extremely precise to use.
How is this achieved? Bluetooth is nice if the apps you use support it, but the fact is that many writing and sketching apps don't. Adonit has therefore dropped the Bluetooth technology found in its earlier styluses, in favour of a more simplified feature set that works with any app or device you care to throw at it.
The drawback is that there's no palm rejection or pressure sensitivity, and no extra button support. But if you're just using the Dash to sketch a quick scene or mock up a storyboard, its lack of Bluetooth is no big loss. It even works as a navigational tool for swiping through screens to find your preferred sketching app.
A quick click on the top of the Dash turns it on, generating an electric field that simulates the conductivity of a human finger. It's powered by a rechargeable battery and Adonit quotes 14 hours' charging time – the power LED stayed lit throughout a week of evenings testing the device with the Evernote, Paper and Notability apps. Mounting the pen in the neat little magnetic USB charging dock brought the pen back to full charge in under half an hour.
If you're looking for a simple, convenient, long-lasting stylus that you can pick up and start writing and sketching with just like a traditional pen straight away, then the Dash is ideal. But painting folks seeking different strokes should look at Bluetooth alternatives, such as the Jot Touch.
